Thread for advice to new graduates or soon-to-be new graduates

[Bbutterfly]

I wanted to start a thread that is ped specific where those of us finishing residency could ask questions. Be it about job search or what to look for in a 1st job out of training, type of practice etc. I see similar things on other forum but I haven't seen a recent one for pediatrics. We often see the occasional thread of someone coming and asking questions only after they have been on the job for a few months. I am also hoping that we can share some opportunities putting our head together that 1 brain alone would not have thought about (creating some sort of virtual networking space so to speak‍♀️)

1st question for me: is DPC doable in peds? Given that a lot of kids have medicaid? If is it doable is it a good avenue right off of residency?

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[SurfingDoctor]

I wanted to start a thread that is ped specific where those of us finishing residency could ask questions. Be it about job search or what to look for in a 1st job out of training, type of practice etc. I see similar things on other forum but I haven't seen a recent one for pediatrics. We often see the occasional thread of someone coming and asking questions only after they have been on the job for a few months. I am also hoping that we can share some opportunities putting our head together that 1 brain alone would not have thought about (creating some sort of virtual networking space so to speak‍♀)

1st question for me: is DPC doable in peds? Given that a lot of kids have medicaid? If is it doable is it a good avenue right off of residency?

I don’t have a lot of experience in that regard, but it can be challenging. I don’t think there are any DPC pediatricians on here, but there are DPC on this forum.

@VA Hopeful Dr

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

So DPC is very doable in peds, I know of a handful in my general area who are doing it and as far as I know its going well. Here is the closest one: GOLD STANDARD PEDIATRICS

That said, pediatrics does have some challenges that adult DPC doesn't have. The largest to my mind is vaccines. Those things are expensive and very few people will want to pay cash for them (plus they expire fairly quickly so you run the risk of having to eat the cost of them not infrequently). So then you either have to go to the health department or have another doctor your kids see just for vaccines.

Another as you mentioned in the large number of kids on Medicaid. This isn't as big of a deal as a fair number of patients I had were on Medicaid and were happy to pay cash to be treated better.

A big selling point of DPC Is access. Pediatricians in general are better about this than us adult doctors. My FP takes 2-3 days best case to be able to see me. My kids' pediatrician has always been able to do same-day sick visits every time we've called.

Your best bet to look into this would be the DPC invite-only Facebook group. I'm no longer a member since I've been out of DPC for a number of years now, but we do have folks on the forum who I believe are still active on it and could invite you: @FamilymedMD

 

[FamilymedMD]

Most of the DPC physicians are FM or IM but there are significant numbers of successful peds and consulting specialty DPC docs now as well.

DPC Alliance is the best place to start. They have lots of education available there and plenty of members willing to help.

PM me your professional name, school, grad year and NPI so I can pass that to the large DPC physician FB group moderators and invite you.

Medicaid varies by state. Here in Maine, plain Medicaid works great with DPC. They pay directly for primary care and use Medicaid for everything else. Managed Medicaid (HMO) won't approve our referrals so that's a no go for patients. You'd have to ask DPC docs in the states you're considering for advice. We now have regional DPC Alliances for most of the country.

 

[chitown2012]

I’ll be finishing residency next year. How should we prepare to job search in the era of COVID? I’m very anxious about not having a job after residency

 

[Bbutterfly]

Most of the DPC physicians are FM or IM but there are significant numbers of successful peds and consulting specialty DPC docs now as well.

DPC Alliance is the best place to start. They have lots of education available there and plenty of members willing to help.

PM me your professional name, school, grad year and NPI so I can pass that to the large DPC physician FB group moderators and invite you.

Medicaid varies by state. Here in Maine, plain Medicaid works great with DPC. They pay directly for primary care and use Medicaid for everything else. Managed Medicaid (HMO) won't approve our referrals so that's a no go for patients. You'd have to ask DPC docs in the states you're considering for advice. We now have regional DPC Alliances for most of the country.

Thank you for your reply. I have sent you a DM. And thanks to everyone replying so far. I am sure a lot of us are going to find your answers helpful

 

[mvenus929]

I’ll be finishing residency next year. How should we prepare to job search in the era of COVID? I’m very anxious about not having a job after residency

Talk to someone about how to do telephone interviews. I had my first telephone interview as a third year resident (when I was still trying to figure out what I wanted to do), and a combination of factors led it to going horribly (at least, in their mind), and I struggled to get back in their good graces. It didn't matter in the end, but I wish someone had actually prepared me for what it meant when someone said 'let's chat to figure out if we'd be a good fit'. I've done a couple now searching for an actual attending job, and it's gone much smoother now that I know what the expectations are. This may not be necessary for local jobs, as you can just meet up and talk without any expense to either of you, but absolutely necessary if you're looking at moving.

The AAP has had a few virtual career fairs. I haven't participated as they rarely have subspecialty jobs available/advertised, but it may be a useful resource to those looking for gen peds jobs.

I'm in the same boat (though for a subspecialty that is much smaller--there are only a handful of jobs across the US currently posted), so I feel your pain.